Oxnard High contest draws a field of 18 marching bands

CHUCK KIRMAN/THE STAR
The Oxnard High School marching band takes the field at Saturday’s competition, which included musicians from 18 schools.

Ventura County Star

Clutching their instruments, Oxnard High School marching band members moved back and forth across a sun-drenched field, filling the air with music from "Pirates of the Caribbean" as part of Saturday's 29th annual Field Show Competition.

The band was among 18 from high schools across Southern California participating in the competition, which was hosted by the Oxnard High School Marching Band and Auxiliary Boosters and held at the school's Bud Houser Stadium.

School Music Director Fundi Legohn said the band members representing the Yellow Jackets, who closed their performance with a fitting, "Arrr," put on one of their best performances yet.

The tournament was one of four the school band will be competing in this season, leading up to the championships Nov. 23 in Northern California, said Legohn, who is in his 22nd year with the program.

Parent and event coordinator Marissa Mach said the competition was a labor for the love of music, highlighting the talents of students who are often the first to enter the school grounds in the morning and among the last to leave.

That dedication is why parents and volunteers stepped up to make the competition a success, Mach said. They started planning for the competition six months ago.

"We are relying on 110 percent of volunteer work," she said.

The school is among three in the county — including Royal High and Simi Valley High — hosting such a competition every year.

Because school budgets have taken a beating, parents have used the event in part to raise about $8,000 to help pay for instruments, instrument repairs, uniforms and transportation.

Pre-event fundraising efforts included carwashes, tamale sales, flower sales, performances at local eateries and the recycling of electronics, she said.

Coming from locations from Los Angeles to Santa Barbara, competing schools were divided into a category for smaller bands and a category for larger ones.

Bands were rated by a panel of nine judges from the Southern California School Band and Orchestra Association. They were evaluated on overall effect, ensemble music, individual music and visual performance, Mach said.

Oxnard High student Niklas Borjesson, 17, who will graduate this fall, said the competition was bittersweet.

"Being part of a band was a lot of hard work, but it was full of so many good memories," said Borjesson, who played the snare drum. "It just flew by."

He said he enjoyed not only performing but also watching bands from other schools shine.

"There is a community here, and we want to learn from other bands and integrate what they offer and vice-versa," he said.

Junior Kristian Harvuot has been with the Oxnard High marching band for three years and said it taught him not only how to become a better musician but also how to become a more hardworking student.

Of the band's performance, he said, "I thought it was our best performance yet because we practice and it never ends. But it can always be better."

Kyle Norwood, music director of the Hueneme High School marching band, said the experience of being in a marching band teaches students lifelong lessons in teamwork, camaraderie and work ethic.

"They're getting an experience they can carry with them for the rest of their lives," he said.

Hueneme High student Yajaira Osorio, a snare drum player, said participating in band sparked a long-term interest in pursuing music production.

The 17-year-old was heartened by the support of parents and said if not for their efforts, she may not have developed her passion for music.

"When you have that kind of support, it's easy to work hard and be dedicated," she said. "I think that really showed out on the field."